I used to think that the smith morra gambit was a dangerous attacking weapon. White sacrifices a pawn to develop quickly and create attacking chances. He has also included many new ideas and analyzed them in depth. Morra published a booklet and several articles about the smith morra around 1950. The smithmorra gambit against the sicilian defense 1 e4 c5 2 d4 cxd4 3 c3 dxc3 4 nxc3 is perhaps not common in grandmaster chess, but at club level it can be a very potent attacking weapon. Encyclopaedia of chess openings classification code index pdf. Its a really fun opening to play and relatively easy to learn so i hope you. Winning with the smithmorra gambit batsford chess library. Morra published a booklet and several articles on the gambit around 1950 and smith wrote nine books and fortynine articles about it. Re1 bc5 black has a good game as whites f2square is sensitive. This 7move trap may seem unlikely, but it has appeared times on the online database i use. Alex lenderman, smith morra gambit, part 1 free, part 2, and part 3. The smithmorra gambit is more of a positional lead in development initiative gambit then an all out attack gambit. Watch im mark ginsburgs video series best play against the smith morra part 1, part 2, part 3.
Smithmorra im mark ginsburg presents a personal chess history. Drawing upon his own experience and analysis, lawrence trent put together a complete dvd on the smithmorra gambit, 1 e4 c5 2 d4 cxd4 3 c3. Why play defense for 12 the game with no winning chances if white so. The latvian gambit leads to very sharp lines as both sides walk a tight rope. It is free to reprint, publish or distribute this document in its entirety in your ezine or.
Im marc essermans lecture on the smith morra gambit on thursday night, april 15th, was universally well received by about 20 in attendance. Accepted scheveningen formation r malidh dongre vs a mirzoev, 2000 b21 sicilian, 2. Mayhem in the morra by marc esserman quality chess. Hence in europe the name morra gambit is preferred. Smithmorra gambit successfully twice more in the 2000 us masters.
Watch more free videos from gm ivan salgados antisicilian. Winner of countless tournaments and former top 10 player. The smith morra gambit against the sicilian defense 1 e4 c5 2 d4 cxd4 3 c3 dxc3 4 nxc3 is perhaps not common in grandmaster chess, but at club level it can be a very potent attacking weapon. Ken smith smithmorra comparing poker and chess gambits.
The smithmorra gambit system against the sicilian defence. What surprises me thus far is that players below 1800ish will nearly always take the gambit. Games using this gambit tend to be decisive with a result either way, although at intermediate levels 14001700 the white player who knows his stuff should cause black plenty of problems, even if. I recommend the smithmorra gambit to anyone who plays 1.
Morra gambit by janos flesch and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Marc esserman believes so and he has 2700rated scalps to back up his view. For explanation of theory tables see theory table and for notation see algebraic notation. Do the course the morra gambit for black from from fm thomas wolskis mentor course the sicilian defense.
Dont worry about your openings just learn general attacking ideas in the sicilian. White sacrifices a pawn early in the opening in exchange for a quick development and attack against the black king. The first few moves in the chess opening lays the foundation for every chess game. And if you want to play the smithmorra gambit theres no better book than winning with the smithmorra gambit.
Im marc essermans lecture on the smithmorra gambit on thursday night, april 15th, was universally well received by about 20 in attendance. Those who came to watch included im justin sarkar who is a good friend of essermans despite their sharp contests in the smith morra, fm steve stoyko, and yaacov norowitz. One file for free 2150 games and a big database of over 9600 games for only usd 5. Smith morra gambit albert hoogendoorn download bok. Contests, competitions, and challenges our challenges are one of our members favorite part of being a member of the chesspathways community. Kolenbetschipkov, khabarovsk 1987, and tesinskymagerramov, budapest. So fans of surprise lines and perhaps fans of the smithmorra are sure to find it attractive. I found this site that convinced me that the smith morra gambit was the opening for me. This move is playable if white is careful on the next move. In chess, the smith morra gambit or simply morra gambit is an opening gambit against the sicilian defence distinguished by the moves. The following variation of the smithmorra gambit is one of my favorite opening lines with white. The modern morra gambit foreword hannes langrock has regularly played the morra gambit against the sicilian defense since 1999.
Sicilian defence, smithmorra gambit, siberian trap. Smith morra gambit from im john grefes mentor course a kaleidoscope of openings. The smith morra gambit or simply the morra gambit the morra gambit is a less popular opening among grandmasters, but a rather popular one between club players. Those who came to watch included im justin sarkar who is a good friend of essermans despite their sharp contests in the smithmorra, fm steve stoyko, and yaacov norowitz. Armed with im marc essermans book, i was initially persuaded that this gambit was sound or close to it. Jul 27, 2019 a bust to the smithmorra gambit by elijah logozar. In chess, the smithmorra gambit or simply morra gambit is an opening gambit against the. I like playing the smith morra as white against the sicilian. The name appears to result from boris schipkov of novosibirsk in southwestern siberia the trap has occurred at least twice in tournament play. Ken smith smith morra comparing poker and chess gambits. The gambit is named after pierre morra 19001969 from france and ken smith 19301999 from dallas, texas. The smithmorra gambit is a powerful weapon for attacking players to as white against the most common reply to 1. For explanation of theory tables see theory table and for notation see algebraic notation 1.
He was a noted practitioner of the morra gambit against the sicilian, viz 1. Mayhem in the morra offers a complete fighting repertoire for white against the sicilian with 1. Trents presentation is systematic and clearly outlined, and he doesnt ignore challenging lines. I like playing the smithmorra as white against the sicilian. We have analyzed many lines together in our training sessions and he has incorporated our findings in his analysis. In exchange for the gambit pawn, white has a piece developed after 4. White gambits a center pawn for space and a lead in development. The latter has a bad reputation, as square c3 is free for the knight. Is it wise to use the smithmorra gambit as a standard reply against the.
Nxc3 and a pawn in the center, while black has an extra pawn and a. The smith morra gambit part i chess strategies, chess game. By sacrificing a pawn, white aims to rapidly develop his pieces with the objective of delivering a swift knockout blow to the unprepared black camp. Fm chow, who, in a perfect storybook ending, adopted the finegold defense himself. Chess openings learn how to play the top 60 openings. It is questionable if this slight edge justifies to sacrifice an important center pawn, the cpawn. When i encounter the sicilian as white, i often will play the smith morra gambit. Nf3 and decides by the reaction of black whether to enter the gambit theory table. The smithmorra gambit against the sicilian defense 1 e4 c5 2 d4 cxd4 3 c3 dxc3 4 nxc3 is perhaps not common in grandmaster chess, but at club level it. Moreover, ken also recommended that players, as part of their development, should adopt, at. You move all your poker chips to the middle of the table when you think you have the best hand. Challenges are always free to enter, and often have prizes available. The smith morra is named after two players, pierre morra from france 19001969 1, and kenneth ray smith of the united states 19301999 2. Watch more free videos from gm ivan salgados antisicilian repertoire series at.
For instance, white has a very free po sition and he. But one mistake can be fatal and mistakes are easy to make in the maze that is the latvian gambit. Is the smithmorra gambit a good idea for regular play. Nxc3 and a pawn in the center, while black has an extra pawn and a central pawn majority. After a series of natural moves in the smithmorra gambit of the sicilian defence, white can lose a queen. Winning with the smithmorra gambit batsford chess library graham burgess on. Im looking for a collection of games using the smith morra gambit. Smithmorra gambit icc opening videos internet chess club. The strength of smithmorra gambit chess stack exchange. The smith morra gambit system against the sicilian defence. It is important if you want to be successful in chess to be familiar with some of the most popular openings and understand the theory behind the moves.
I used to think that the smithmorra gambit was a dangerous attacking weapon. Not taking it as mentioned in the other comment a valid option, but if you know what youre doing and you avoid the tricks, its effectively a free pawn theres a reason its rare at high levels. International master timothy taylor is an experienced tournament player who has enjoyed several notable successes, including winning the us open. The sicilian defense may be the single most common chess opening in modern play. May 16, 2017 watch more free videos from gm ivan salgados antisicilian repertoire series at. Chess openings crowood chess library ebooks for free. Smith morra secrets best gambit opening against the. Ive actually seen an 1800 rated player beat a grandmaster online on icc with the smithmorra gambit. Jun 08, 2016 back when this game was played the smithmorra gambit was all the rage thanks to ken smith.
Nf3 and decides by the reaction of black whether to enter the gambit. I think the last books to offer general coverage of the smithmorra were graham burgesss winning with the smithmorra gambit 1994 and jozsef palkovis morra gambit 2000, both of which discuss multiple alternatives for white and black. Hi everyone, in this video i am going to teach you the smith morra, my favourite gambit against the sicilian defense. The morra gambit, more recently called the smithmorra gambit. Morra published a booklet and several articles about the smithmorra around 1950. Smith morra gambit bibliography when i first developed an opening repertoire in my teens, i got most of my information from the old chess digest pamphlets of ken smith and john hall.
Why did you elect to take up the smithmorra gambit in the first place. This is why those two books are so prized by collectors today. Players 22002400 do not take it and it usually transposes to an alapin. Most of the chess openings have been named and analyzed for hundreds of years. After an early bishop sacrifice, my knight raided the.
Qxd4 really isnt a promising option, since the queen will be pushed around, while black makes developing moves like nc6. But thats probably the rating threshold where you should switch to a more mainline opening. Also, unlike the center game, the trade of the cpawn for the dpawn also gives black added central control. Chess publishing\b21 smithmorra gambit last updated 07. A complete repertoire against 1 e4 by jeremy silman pdf, epub ebook d0wnl0ad winning with the sicilian defense a complete repertoire against 1 e4, revised 2nd edition is a tome of 353 pages, which provides a system, or repertoire, of opening variations for playing the black side of the sicilian. Accepted paulsen formation m negele vs kamsky, 2007 b21 sicilian, 2. I used to have a golden rule of not playing the smith morra gambit against anyone above a 1700 rating because they always knew the line in and out and knew how to maintain their pawn advantage. The senior american master ken smith, who died last month february 1999, was an advocate of gambits. I managed to utilize the morra with success both over the board and online. I recommend the smith morra gambit to anyone who plays 1. Trents presentation is systematic and clearly outlined and the morra is a great opening with which to teach younger players basics like the value of development, while developing their tactical skills. The smith morra gambit is a variation of the sicilian defence in which white sacrifices a pawn right in the opening to get a small long term positional advantage. The gambit is named after two players, pierre morra from france 19001969 and ken smith 19301999 of the dallas chess club, who popularized it to.
A58, a59 gm misa paps volga benko gambit artillery on the a and b files added on 04. The smithmorra is named after two players, pierre morra from france 19001969 1, and kenneth ray smith of the united states 19301999 2. Regular contests with prizes, such as free analysis of your games by a national master. The following variation of the smith morra gambit is one of my favorite opening lines with white. Drawing upon his own experience and analysis, lawrence trent put together a complete dvd on the smithmorra gambit, 1. And if you want to play the smith morra gambit theres no better book than winning with the smith morra gambit. Back when this game was played the smithmorra gambit was all the rage thanks to ken smith. If the video is called fight the morrasmith gambit, we should see the. As you play your gambit, you are projecting all the confidence in the world. Access to a supportive community who wants to make your chess journey a success. In chess, the smithmorra gambit or simply morra gambit is an opening gambit against the sicilian defence distinguished by the moves.